Move Over, David Beckham!

We have a little soccer star on our hands! A few weeks ago, we signed Keziah up for Intro to Soccer, held by Reach Forth. It's just up the road and seeing as she won't have any bubbles in her head this summer, we figured we will go and enjoy the opportunity to learn to kick a ball around.

We picked up her uniform and she put it on right away that night to practice some of her moves.

We were quite impressed with how well she could hoof this thing!

A few days later, the soccer season started for her. Each session is about an hour and 15 minutes long, where they practice kicking into the net as well as to their partners. Then the last little bit, they attempted a game. If you have need a good chuckle, all you have to do is watch little kids try to play soccer. It has got to be one of the most funniest sights!!

When she wasn't taking water breaks....

...or comparing shinpads with her teammates,

she was out there running hard. The tongue helps :o)

But then, it all got too much for her, with the coach yelling "this way!!!" and the parents yelling "Kick the ball!!" and with kids shoving, pushing and kicking, as well as the fact that it was almost 8 at night (well past her bedtime - I even let her sleep 2 hours that afternoon!!). As soon as I saw this, I knew what was coming:

Yup. The tears:

After sitting with me for awhile, her little friend came by and took her by the hand to play again. Isn't that just adorable???!

And off she went to finish up the game. She was very tired but talked about it a lot the next couple of days.

But you know what? She wasn't the only one in tears. So was I (becoming a mom has made me such an emotional basketcase sometimes). For 10 years I would go to my little students' soccer games. For 10 years I cheered on that little one, all the while with a small stab of pain in my heart. For 10 years I sat with the soccer moms, the ones that got to take my students home after the game. For 10 years I cheered like a madman, feeling so happy that a student of mine wanted me to come to his/her game, only to leave with empty arms and no child chattering away to me in the back of the car on the way home.

For 10 years, I never dreamed that one day *I* would be joining the ranks; that *I* would have my own child play soccer. Not my student - even though I saw them as mine, but my own little one, one that I get to take home with me! And here I am today, with her little uniform, including the humongous socks with the heels covering her calves, in my washing machine; with her little cleats resting in the back hall; with her sweaty shinpads on my counter (yuck!).

And so, there I sat, watching her run around, trying hard to hold back the tears. Tears of "I can't believe this is real"; tears of happiness, bliss, joy and ever gratefulness. Daily thanking God for the experiences we get to enjoy through this treasured blessing who is growing up way too fast!!!